AMA: Fischer Nightstick 97 Limited Edition Prototype

fischerskis

fischerskis

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Hey there I am Brian Landrigan aka Lando aka BP the marketing director for Fischer Skis in the US. I got my start in the industry through Newschoolers writing news, hosting NS Radio (RIP), and creating events like the Midwest Ski Film Festival. NS introduced me to a ton of lifelong friends across the country, brought me to Utah and ultimately helped me land some positions with Bern, Yakima, and now Fischer. A huge goal of mine when I started at Fischer was to diversify the brand from just being known as a Race brand, and to build up the Ranger brand here in North America. Since I started I have been talking to the team about getting the Nightstick line back in the mix. Two years ago we started development on the Nightstick 97, and two new Nightstick skis that will be released in January.

Today we launched a limited quantity of the prototype skis the Fischer team (Luca Pichler, Topi, Juhu, Lukas Mueller, Tyler Harding and more) have been testing. This prototype is the final shape, and construction that will go into production later this season, but with a limited edition graphic. The ski is stiff underfoot yet playful in the tip and tail, has an optimized camber profile for pop, and a wide profile for confidence on rails, and jumps.

Happy to answer any questions about the new ski, the Fischer brand, or just anything in general.
 
Why don’t you sponsor any real athletes?

Will these explode after 10 days?

When will you stop making race skis?
 
14551025:Vish-shoe said:
Why don’t you sponsor any real athletes?

Will these explode after 10 days?

When will you stop making race skis?
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1. We haven't had a park ski for four years, and are currently building up a new team. Luca Pichler has done an awesome job getting some up and comers on the team, and we have some new athletes to announce soon.

2. The skis are incredibly durable, most of the team tested only 1 pair of skis, and the only damage to report was some burred edges. The ski is designed with an extra layer of titanium underfoot which adds increased sidewall durability.

3. Never it is part of our heritage. A ski company can produce a lot of different types of skis very well. A lot of what we learn from the race skis technology wise gets used further down the line.
 
Why did you kill the freestyle/ freeski models in the first place? Furthermore why would a free skier want to support a race company?
 
14551029:rudolph said:
Why did you kill the freestyle/ freeski models in the first place? Furthermore why would a free skier want to support a race company?
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Hey Rudolph. Long time, hope life is good! I wasn't at Fischer when they made the decision to axe the line, we have a relatively new team here in the US and have been pushing on this project since 2019. We made the decision to launch a new line versus keeping the old Nightstick in the line, and have been actively testing the new skis for the past two seasons.

I would not consider Fischer a "race" brand. We are a ski brand. Fischer is turning 100 years old next season, and is the only heritage brand still owned by the Fischer family. We are really one of the oldest indy brands out there. Everyone at the company is passionate about skiing, pushing the sport forward, and continue to develop new skis for the next 100+ years.
 
I know these were the absolute favourite ski of at least one of the more park oriented testers at the most recent Newschoolers test.

It seems the silver lining of the park line being dead for a few years is with the revival a new ski comes out, rather than the same ski that's been around for 10 years getting another new graphic as is so often the case.

Back around 2009 I had a pair of Addicts and I learned so many tricks on those skis.
 
Not a question but your ski boots legit changed skiing for me. I have 2 completely different feet and the vaccum shells allow me to have a boot that fits me. Welcome to ns [tag=280723]@fischerskis[/tag]

**This post was edited on Sep 13th 2023 at 10:53:45am
 
14551068:Bernie585 said:
What's your definition of real athletes?
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Real chill n cool motherfuckers who get down in da streets while keepin it humble and underground and hard workin’, not some corny ass TikTok bitches who only post clips on flat tubes with sped up Lil Uzi Vert playin in the background.
 
Man, childish hate towards a company that has deep roots in all aspects of ski culture. Why the race hate kiddos?

anyways..

Nightstick 97, what will the other two models be? Wide boys? I have some buddies who ski for Fischer on the Rangers, they absolutely rip, seem incredibly stable for big mountain/freeride. Will the other models creep into more of a playful pow ski?
 
14551119:GrandThings said:
If you could put one skier on the Fischer team who's already sponsd by another company, who would you want?
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I’d throw Jonah Williams and Parker White on there but Rossi got them gobbled up
 
14551118:rudager said:
Man, childish hate towards a company that has deep roots in all aspects of ski culture. Why the race hate kiddos?

anyways..

Nightstick 97, what will the other two models be? Wide boys? I have some buddies who ski for Fischer on the Rangers, they absolutely rip, seem incredibly stable for big mountain/freeride. Will the other models creep into more of a playful pow ski?
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yup you are on the right track. without giving too much away there will be a narrower ski, and a wider ski than the 97. This line will be more playful/surfy than the Ranger line, and at a slightly lower price point. The entire line will be introduced in January 24.
 
14551119:GrandThings said:
If you could put one skier on the Fischer team who's already sponsd by another company, who would you want?
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without naming names, we are looking for some more North American skiers to get on the program. Ideally a balance of urban / street riders, and competition athletes. if you have any ideas or know anyone feel free to slide in the DM's.
 
14551128:fischerskis said:
without naming names, we are looking for some more North American skiers to get on the program. Ideally a balance of urban / street riders, and competition athletes. if you have any ideas or know anyone feel free to slide in the DM's.
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Lol thats not what I meant but aight.
 
14551132:fischerskis said:
I know, I know. Just don't want to name names. I don't want to be accused of being a poacher.
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lolol fair enough

Always thought the Nightsticks were dope, I'll be a shooter
 
14551136:Newsheepers said:
when are gonna we see new the skis the on website, Jan 24? cheers
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yes a team edit, and highlight page will drop on the site towards the end of January.

For now the Nightstick 97 is up on the site now. To note this is a limited edition graphic, and the new line will have a cool new graphic concept. more soon...
 
14551031:fischerskis said:
Hey Rudolph. Long time, hope life is good! I wasn't at Fischer when they made the decision to axe the line, we have a relatively new team here in the US and have been pushing on this project since 2019. We made the decision to launch a new line versus keeping the old Nightstick in the line, and have been actively testing the new skis for the past two seasons.

I would not consider Fischer a "race" brand. We are a ski brand. Fischer is turning 100 years old next season, and is the only heritage brand still owned by the Fischer family. We are really one of the oldest indy brands out there. Everyone at the company is passionate about skiing, pushing the sport forward, and continue to develop new skis for the next 100+ years.
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Life is awesome BP. The race comment was not meant to be negative, having a race program means your company knows how to build quality skis.I watched two nightsticks ever break on Heff, and they were on two huge street features, so I know the extent of what they can handle. I was more curious as to how Fischer is branding themselves today versus the 2019 image. Also glad to see that you are still working in the ole ski industry.
 
14551139:fischerskis said:
yes a team edit, and highlight page will drop on the site towards the end of January.

For now the Nightstick 97 is up on the site now. To note this is a limited edition graphic, and the new line will have a cool new graphic concept. more soon...
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Hints on the new graphics?
 
I got the chance to ride these skis during the NewSchoolers ski test at Sunshine and these were hands down my favourite ski. I would never ski another ski again if I got to ride these bad boys for life.

Had the classic attitude going into testing them, “friggen race ski won’t be any fun, what’s a race brand doing making a park ski” and all I can say it was love at first nose bud 2 onto the tube. I’m 100% buying a set for this season. Honestly it’s the unicorn of skis and I’d like to shake the hands of who designed these pieces of art cause I never been so stoked on a ski before
 
Is it true you all have a forest you own that you harvest your cores from? Some old instructor/race coach told me that but I wasn't buying it.
 
14551183:r00kie said:
Is it true you all have a forest you own that you harvest your cores from? Some old instructor/race coach told me that but I wasn't buying it.
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We source trees from a forest that is located within 10km of our factory in the Ukraine, the cores are produced in the same factory that our skis are produced in. While we don't own the forest, the wood is certainly located close by, and we have full control over the core manufacturing process. What is also cool is that all the extra wood and shavings are used to heat up the water we use to produce skis. A cool sustainability story. More info here.
 
14551186:fischerskis said:
We source trees from a forest that is located within 10km of our factory in the Ukraine, the cores are produced in the same factory that our skis are produced in. While we don't own the forest, the wood is certainly located close by, and we have full control over the core manufacturing process. What is also cool is that all the extra wood and shavings are used to heat up the water we use to produce skis. A cool sustainability story. More info here.
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That's pretty sick.
 
What are your plans to create a real impact on the free ski scene media wise? Line and faction’s team videos are very unique and have a huge reach. It’s wild to me that companies spend so much money developing park skis and sponsoring riders but never create any branded deliverables that really push their brand vision. Like why tf does armada not have an annual team edit??
 
14551204:cool270out said:
What are your plans to create a real impact on the free ski scene media wise? Line and faction’s team videos are very unique and have a huge reach. It’s wild to me that companies spend so much money developing park skis and sponsoring riders but never create any branded deliverables that really push their brand vision. Like why tf does armada not have an annual team edit??
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That was one of my main goals with the project. We'll have a short edit from a shoot in Austria that happened this past April out with the main release of the line in January, and we're working on plans for a longer team edit that would drop next fall when the skis land in stores.
 
14551205:fischerskis said:
That was one of my main goals with the project. We'll have a short edit from a shoot in Austria that happened this past April out with the main release of the line in January, and we're working on plans for a longer team edit that would drop next fall when the skis land in stores.
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Hell yeah, I love to hear that. I implore you guys to be bold and expressive with the media. Snowboard and skate companies make some true works of art that will stand the test of time as more than marketing assets
 
topic:fischerskis said:
Hey there I am Brian Landrigan aka Lando aka BP the marketing director for Fischer Skis in the US. I got my start in the industry through Newschoolers writing news, hosting NS Radio (RIP), and creating events like the Midwest Ski Film Festival. NS introduced me to a ton of lifelong friends across the country, brought me to Utah and ultimately helped me land some positions with Bern, Yakima, and now Fischer. A huge goal of mine when I started at Fischer was to diversify the brand from just being known as a Race brand, and to build up the Ranger brand here in North America. Since I started I have been talking to the team about getting the Nightstick line back in the mix. Two years ago we started development on the Nightstick 97, and two new Nightstick skis that will be released in January.

Today we launched a limited quantity of the prototype skis the Fischer team (Luca Pichler, Topi, Juhu, Lukas Mueller, Tyler Harding and more) have been testing. This prototype is the final shape, and construction that will go into production later this season, but with a limited edition graphic. The ski is stiff underfoot yet playful in the tip and tail, has an optimized camber profile for pop, and a wide profile for confidence on rails, and jumps.

Happy to answer any questions about the new ski, the Fischer brand, or just anything in general.
Click to expand...

Spec wise, how do the new nightsticks compare to other popular park skis with respect to rocker, flex, and shape? What niche do they fit into?
 
as a former rider of nightsticks, do you intend to implement a softer flex pattern than previous? I mean the reason why I hopped off them in the first place was although very lightweight, they were ROCK solid, i mean zero flex whatsoever. Just curious to see what the new line of skis you guys have in store are going to be like.
 
14551207:Cleetus said:
Spec wise, how do the new nightsticks compare to other popular park skis with respect to rocker, flex, and shape? What niche do they fit into?
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It's 132-97-122 at 177, it has a tiny bit more rocker in the tip than the tail, a fair amount of camber and stiffness underfoot but is soft in the tip and tail. Great pop, but also good for butters a nice balance imo. I think it compares closely to a faction prodigy 2 but with a lighter swing weight. I'd say the niche is park skiers who like a stable and precise ski that can also get loose when the time comes.
 
14551208:steez_apprentice said:
as a former rider of nightsticks, do you intend to implement a softer flex pattern than previous? I mean the reason why I hopped off them in the first place was although very lightweight, they were ROCK solid, i mean zero flex whatsoever. Just curious to see what the new line of skis you guys have in store are going to be like.
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The 97 is certainly less stiff than the previous generation of Nightstick especially in the tip and tail. We'll see some of the characteristics of previous generation in the narrower version coming soon, but with some tweaks. Like with the Ranger series skis will get less stiff and more surfy as they get wider.
 
14551182:fischerskis said:
It's something that has never been done before, but can't really spill the beans. Will be excited to see what you all think.
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I hope it’s a can of spilled beans
 
Reintroducing Joss would be an interesting play... Was confused when Fischer decided to part ways/not renew his contract after he won the Olympics. Fan of the original Nightstick, excited to see the entire new line.
 
This is getting me fired up I can see Fischer making a comeback to the park scene if this pans out. Nightstick 97 sounds super sick. Wish I got a chance to test a pair. Will they come in a 189 or larger?
 
Fyi to all the dudes that diss Fischer just remember that them posting on NS and answering questions is more core than 90% of companies out today.
 
14551139:fischerskis said:
yes a team edit, and highlight page will drop on the site towards the end of January.

For now the Nightstick 97 is up on the site now. To note this is a limited edition graphic, and the new line will have a cool new graphic concept. more soon...
Click to expand...

Those bases on the protos are so goddam beautiful, excited to see the full design
 
would be cool to see a graphic colab with NS users. maybe give parameters on what your kinda looking for but i think that could spark some engagement!

i scrolled over some of the questions so this may be a double. can we get more specs on the rocker profile and shape? also what is the weight? i saw one reply said the sidewalls should be stronger because of the titanium. sounds heavy

last question, do they make the whole mountain your playground??
 
14551275:partyandBS said:
would be cool to see a graphic colab with NS users. maybe give parameters on what your kinda looking for but i think that could spark some engagement!

i scrolled over some of the questions so this may be a double. can we get more specs on the rocker profile and shape? also what is the weight? i saw one reply said the sidewalls should be stronger because of the titanium. sounds heavy

last question, do they make the whole mountain your playground??
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It's 1870g at 177cm, the titanium does add a little weight, but the AirTec (holes milled in the core) helps lighten the overall swing weight of the ski. Jeff Neagle from Ski Essentials posted a great review about the ski and mentions how he feels about the weight. Check it out here
 
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